Written by: Corey Janoff
This post was originally published on our previous blog website on March 7, 2018 and has since not been revised and/or updated.
There are a lot of opinions about success. Many successful people are often interviewed and asked what their keys to success are. One critical key to success that cannot be overstated is persistence.
There is a great quote by the 30th President of the United States, Calvin Coolidge:
Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not: nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not: the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan ‘Press On!’ has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race.
Talent with Nothing to Show for It
There is so much truth in those six sentences. Wasted talent is something we are all familiar with. If you played sports growing up, I’m sure you had a kid, or several kids, on your team that had superb natural talent. However, they were lazy. They never practiced in the offseason. They never worked hard. They never were in very good shape. They relied on talent alone and it didn’t get them very far. They likely stood out early in high school and never improved from freshman to senior year.
They blamed coaches for not putting them in positions to succeed, or for not getting that college scholarship. That person is the 35-year-old at the local watering hole, still wearing his letterman’s jacket, telling anyone that will listen, “I could have been somebody if it wasn’t for that damn coach in high school.”
Brains for Nothing
There are many smart people out there. Intelligence is the intellectual’s version of talent. You can be physically gifted, or mentally gifted, but if you don’t apply your capabilities to bettering yourself and the world around you, then what are you doing?
That’s great that you can solve a Rubik’s Cube in under 60 seconds. That’s impressive that you got a perfect score on your SAT’s. It doesn’t matter that you know how to solve all of the world’s problems if you aren’t actually working to solve all of the world’s problems.
Overeducated
I am a big believer in education. I think it is important that everyone has access to a quality education. But as with all things in life, too much may be counterproductive. Everybody has a friend who triple majored in college. Then went to law school. Then got their MBA. And for all of their degrees, their work resume and career success is a bit disappointing.
I think some people continue to go to school to avoid the inevitable of having to actually settle into a career and work. They can keep learning and expand their knowledge in hopes of eventually finding something that want to commit themselves to for the long haul. Whether or not that will actually happen is still up for debate.
Persistence
Persistence can help you overcome a lack of talent, lack of intelligence, or lack of education. If you work hard and apply yourself and keep grinding, you can achieve immense success. If you combine talent or brains with persistence, then the sky is the limit.
Luck can play a role in all of this. But the harder you work, the luckier you tend to get. That is because you put yourself in positions to be in the right place at the right time.
If you fail the first time, don’t give up. Get yourself up and try again. So many people have great ideas, but give up on them the moment they reach a speed bump in the road. You are going to fail. Many times. Failure is simply one less experiment you have to do until you succeed.
If you are doing the minimum required of you at your job, that’s OK, but you probably won’t see a lot of career growth. You may be content with that. There is nothing wrong with that. But if you want to excel and advance your career, put in the extra effort. Ask for additional assignments. Help with projects that aren’t your responsibility. Get in early. Stay late.
How Does This Apply to My Finances?
This is a blog about financial planning, so it is only fitting to connect the dots between persistence and financial success.
The obvious connection is the harder you work, the more money you can make. But what about achieving your financial goals? If your only financial goal is to earn as much money as possible, then you’re all set. But for those of you with other financial goals, persistence will help you achieve them, too.
If you Google, “persistent definition,” you will find the definition to be: continuing firmly or obstinately in a course of action in spite of difficulty or opposition.
If you have a particular financial goal that you want to achieve, the first step is to develop a plan to reach that goal. The next step is to stick to that plan no matter what.
Let’s say hypothetically that one of your goals is to pay for your daughter to go to college and you have determined that if you invest $600/month, that should put you on track to be able to cover four years at the state university. You need to be persistent with your savings plan. Make sure you are investing that $600 each and every month, regardless of what life throws at you.
You need to get the washing machine replaced in the same month that you have some unexpected medical expenses? Doesn’t matter. Put that $600 in the college savings account anyways.
You have to fly the family across the country for a funeral and spend several thousand dollars on flights and hotel? Doesn’t matter. Put that $600 in the college savings account anyways.
You have probably heard of the term, “Pay yourself first.” What that means is, before shelling out money to everybody else and buying all of the things you want or think you might need, make sure you put some money into your own pocket first. Whether that be your emergency savings, your retirement account, or the college savings account.
Whatever your financial goals are, make sure you are directing money towards them before you direct money towards other things. The people who are most successful in achieving their financial goals do just that. They persistently direct money towards their financial plan.
Becoming wealthy isn’t about making a lot of money. The ability to set aside a portion of your paycheck each and every pay cycle is what will enable you to grow your wealth and ultimately achieve financial independence.
